Apparatus for continuously tanning, bleaching, scouring, and oiling leather.



No. 742.115. PATENTED 0011?. 20, 1903.

w. T. FORBES. Y APPARATUS FOR GONTINUOUSLY TANNING, BLEAGHING, SGOURING,

AND OILING LEATHER. APPLIUATION Hum SEPT. 29. 1902.

N0 MODEL.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Wu X No.742,l15. PATENTED 0011-20, 1903.

4 w. T. FORBES. APPARATUS FOR GONTINUOUSLY TANNING, BLEAGHING, momma,

' AND OILING LEATHER.

APPLICATION FILED BEPT. 29. 1902.

no MOD W 2sHEzTssEnn z.-.

UNITED STATES reamed October 20, 1903.-

PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER T. FORBES, OF COLLEGEPARK, GEORGIA.

APPARATUS FOR CONTINUOUSLY TANNING, BLEACHING, SCQURING, ANQ OILINGLEATHER,

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 742,115, dated October20, 1903. Application filed September 29, 1902. Serialv No. 125,275. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern: M

Be it known that I, WALTER T. FORBES, a citizen of the United States,residing at 001- legepark, in the county of Fulton and State of Georgia,have invented a new and useful Apparatus for Continuously Tanning,Bleaching, Scouring, and Oiling Leather, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates'to a process of and apparatus for scouring,washing, and bleaching heavy leather or for washing, tanning,

and oiling and dyeing such leather.

The object of the invention is in a ready,

rapid, thoroughly-feasible, and practical manner and without thenecessity of handling the leather either to effect scouring, washing,and bleaching thereof, or, if preferred, the tanning, oiling, anddyeing, or merely the securing and washing of leather.

With these and other objects in view, as will appear as the nature ofthe invention is better understood, the same consists in the novelconstruction and combination of parts. of an apparatus for carrying intoefiect the above named steps and in the process of treating leather, aswill be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, andin which like characters of reference indicate corresponding parts,there is illustrated one form of embodiment of the invention capable ofcarrying the same into practical operation, it be- I ing understood thatthe elements therein exhibited may be varied or changed as toshape,proportion, and exact manner of assemblage without departing from thespirit thereof, and in these drawings Figure 1 is a view in sectionalelevation of an apparatus embodying the essential features of thepresent invention. Fig. 2 is a view in transverse section, showing moreparticularly the arrangement of the engine and pumping mechanism withrelation to the apparatus.--;Fig. 3 is a view in top plan, the roofofvthe apparatus being removed. Fig. 4 is a perspective detail view ofone of the spraying devices. Fig. 5 is a view in plan of aslightly-modified form of mechanism for feeding the skins or hidesthrough the apparatus. p

The essential feature of the present invenorskins either to effectscouring, washing, bleaching,-and oiling thereof or tanning, oil ing,and dyeing, the same apparatus being adapted for either purpose merelyby a change in the agents employed. The agents are to be sprayed underhigh pressure against the surfaces of the skin or side, thereby to causerapid assimilation by the skin or leather of the agents.- As stated, theoperation is continuous-that isto say, a skin or side of leather is notremoved from the apparatus from the start to the finish of theprocedure, but is moved in a step-by-step manner from one vat or tankinto another one until all of the steps have been completed. Under theseconditions, as will be apparent, handling of the skins or hides isobviated, all the attendant has to do being to keep the different agentsemployed at the proper strength.

Referring now to the drawings, 1 designates a chamber divided bypartitions 2in this instance, into four compartments or tanks, in eachof which a difierent step in the procedure is effected. The chamber maybe made of any suitable material, preferably of a noncorrosive metal,and is provided with a top 3, which may be hinged to the chamber topermit of its being turned back, if desired, for

the purpose of gaining access to the interior of the chamber. Thebottoms 4 of the compartments are by preference hopper-shaped, and atthe apex of each bottom is connected a pipe 5, which communicates with avat 6, containing the agent, there being a separate and independent vatfor each compartment. The chamber is herein shown as supported byuprights 7, secured to a suitable foundation 8. For convenience ofdescription the compartments will be hereinafter referred to under thereference-letters A, B, O, and D.

Arranged in a horizontal plane within the compartments and preferablyabout midway of the height thereof is a screen 9, which is designed tosupportthe skins or sides while being subjected to treatment, and aboveand below the screens in eachof the compartments, except compartment D,there are arranged a plurality of spray-pipes 10, disposed transverselyof the compartments, one end of each of the pipes being closed by a capor plug 11, as clearly shown in Fig. 4. The option is the continuoustreatment of leather posed faces of these pipes are provided withjet-orifices 12, through which the liquor is discharged in fine spraysor jets upon the skin or leather to be treated. In this instance eightof these pipes are shown in each compartment, except in compartment D,which has but four, and these disposed below the skin for a purpose thatwill presently appear. The pairs of pipes are connected through unions13 with a feed-pipe 14, there being one of these feed-pipes to eachcompartment, and these feed pipes connect through branch pipes 15 withpumps 16, preferably of the rotary type and driven by an engine 17, alsoof the rotary type, although any other form of engine may be employedthat may be found preferable, or the pump-shafts may be driven from abelt connecting with a suitable source of power. \Vith each pump thereis connected a pipe 18, which dips down into one of the vats 6, thepurpose of this ar rangement being to permit constant reuse of theagents by withdrawing them from the vats, spraying them into thecompartments, and then returning them to the vats through the pipes 5,tapped into the bottom of the compartments.

The reason for providing but four spraypipes in compartment D anddisposing these beneath the screen is that it is designed in thiscompartment to oil or dye the grained side of the leather, and as thisside is generally disposed downward the spray-pipes are disposed beneaththe screen in order that superfluous oil or dye will drop down upon thebottom of compartment D and be conserved for reuse.

The ends of the chamber as well as the partitions are provided withtransverse slots 19, through which the skins or sides pass from onecompartment to another, there being a slatted platform 20 at each end ofthe chamber to support the sides or skins before entry into and afterpassing from the chamber.

The step of rolling the leather either before or after oiling or dyeingis necessary, and to effect this there is a pair of pressure-rollers 21and 21, arranged within the compartment C adjacent to its discharge end,as clearly shown in Fig. 1. The lower roller 21 has a shaft arrahged infixed bearings 22 in the sides of the chamber and carries a pulley23,arouud which passes a belt to a suitable source of power. The upperroller 21 has the ends of its shaft mounted in spring-pressed boxes 24,by which arrangement the said roller will automatically adjust itself tohides or skins of different thicknesses, springs 25, associated with thebearings of the roller 21 and being adjustable to various tensionsthrough the medium of cranks 26 and followers 27, hearing on the upperends of the springs, operating to vary the pressure between the rollersas may be desired. It is to be understood that the means herein shownfor increasing or diminishing the pressure of the roller 21 withrelation to the roller 21 is one of many that may be employed, and theinvention is not to be limited to the construction shown.

In the form of apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2 the hides or skins arelinked or otherwise secured together and may be moved through theapparatus by attaching ropes to the forward skin of the series andpassing these out through the slot at the rear end of the apparatus, andafter the said forward skin reaches the compartment D the feeding of thechain of skins or sides through the apparatus may readily be effected.If, however, it be preferred to feed these skins separately orindependently of each other through the apparatus, this may be effectedby the provision of a plurality of transverse shafts 28 in eachcompartment, as shown in Fig. 5, said shafts bearing toothed wheels 29,adapted to bite into the flesh side of the skin or hide, and thus moveit from compartment to compartment. One end of each of these shaftscarries a sprocket-wheel 30, around which passes a sprocketchain 3] tobe driven in any suitable manner.

Where the apparatus is used for scouring, washing, bleaching, and oilspraying the leather, the vat or compartment A will be supplied with asuitable detergent, such as carbonate of soda and water in theproportion of about one pound of the soda to one hundred and fiftygallons of water. The vat or compartment B will be continuously suppliedwith water, that of compartment C with a sumac solution of about 10barkometer, and that of compartment D with oil. The skins or sides arefirst passed to compartment A, Where they are thoroughly scoured, thenceto compartment B, where they are washed, thence to compartment 0, wherethey are bleached by the sumac solution, and thence to compartment D,where they are oiled on the grained side. These operations arecontinuous, and by reason of the high pressure at which the agents areprojected against the leather the various steps are accomplished in theshortest space of time and with the best results.

Where the leather is to be tanned, oiled, and dyed, the skinsimmediately after depilation are passed to compartment A, where they aresubjected to the action of a waterspray on one or both sides to removethe lime. They are then passed to compartment B, where they aresubjected to treatment by a chrome tannin g-liquor sprayed against them,as described. They are then passed to compartment C, where they mayreceive treatment from a tannic-acid bath under spraypressure, andthence to compartment D, where they are oiled, having been previouslyrolled in the manner before described, or, if preferred, the leather mayfirst be oiled, then rolled, and then dyed.

It is to be understood that all of the steps herein defined are notnecessary at all times, as in some instances the process may stop afterscouring and washing, or after scour ICC Letters Patent, is-

1. An apparatus of the class described, comprising a plurality ofcompartments, horizontally-arranged leather-supporting means disposedtherein, liquid-spraying devices arranged adjacent to theleather-supporting means, and mechanism for circulating the tanning orother agents employed, under high pressure, through the compartments.

2. An apparatus of the class described,comprising a plurality ofconnected compartments, open-work leather-supporting means arrangedwithin the compartments, liquidspraying devices arranged adjacent" tothe leather-supportin g means and discharging toward the same, means forsupplying liquid under pressure to the spraying devices, andleather-rolling mechanism disposed adjacent to the end of one of thecompartments.

3. An apparatus of the class described, comprising a plurality ofcommunicating chambers,horizontally-disposed open-Work leathersupportingmeans arranged within the compartments, liquid-spraying devices disposedabove and below the leather supporting means in each of the compartmentsbut one, a liquid-containing vat for each of the compartments, aforce-pump communicating with each of the vats and with the liquid-sprayingdevices, and a conduit connecting the bottom of each of the compartmentswith the vats.

at. An apparatus of the class described, comprising a plurality ofcommunicating chambers, open-work leather-supporting means arrangedtherein, automatically-adjustable leather-rolling mechanism disposed inone of the compartments, spraying devices arranged in each of thecompartments, and means for supplying the agents employed, underpressure, to each of the spraying devices.

5. An apparatus of the class described, comprising a'plurality ofcommunicating chambers, open-work leather supporting means arrangedthereimand positively-driven mechanism for feeding the leather from onecompartment to the other throughout the apparatus.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

WALTER T. FORBES.

Witnesses: I

WARREN G. LEWIS, ANDREW Frrz;

